(Gray News) - The Federal Trade Commission warned nursing homes residents and their families of reports of facilities trying to take the coronavirus stimulus payments of people on Medicaid.

Lois Greisman, elder justice coordinator for the FTC, said in a post on the agency’s website that management in some facilities allegedly claimed residents must turn over the money. The direct payments were part of the CARES Act, the $2.2 trillion stimulus package passed by Congress in March.

"This is not just a horror story making the rounds," Greisman wrote. "These are actual reports that our friends in the Iowa Attorney General’s Office have been getting - and handling. Other states have seen the same."

According to the CARES Act, the payments were a tax credit, which don't count as “resources” for federal benefits programs like Medicaid, the FTC said.

"If a loved one lives in a nursing facility and you’re not sure what happened to their payment, talk with them soon," Greisman wrote. "And consider having a chat with the facility’s management to make sure they know which side of the law to be on."